Marci Ikeler

List of idea generation methods

List of idea generation methods

What an awesome resource… a definitive list of brainstorming, mind mapping, and other techniques to drive creativity and generate ideas.

Via Design for Service.

User Interfaces from the Future

Design Reviver references recent research projects to hypothosize what kinds of user interfaces we might be treated to in 2020, with a focus on new “intelligent” devices that support more direct interactions (pointing with a finger instead of pointing with a mouse).

A few of the trends are already apparent in computer and web interfaces, such as gesture-based interfaces and interfaces that are aware of context (the iPhone is the most obvious example of both of these).

If this is the future, I’ll be a very happy lady in 11 years.

Via Nick Finck.

Successes in Game Advertising

An interesting topic that’s been floating around the net lately: the success of branded/ sponsored content in video games. This is a great example of how digital encompasses so much more than the web. Branding and product placement has a really natural role in games that base their world on (usually augmented) reality; much more natural, in fact, than in forced commercial breaks between television programming or intrusive banner ads online.

Link: Transmedia Planning

Transmedia Planning

Cool article about how communications planning now can (and should, in my opinion) transcend media to the extent that different portions of a narrative can be distributed across channels. This has been said before, but it needs to be reiterated as mainstream content/ advertising still hasn’t got the message.

Via Talent Imitates, Genius Steals.

Craig Newmark Unlocks the Secrets to Building a Community

Nice set of guidelines from the original master, Craig Newmark (of Craigslist). Key points include the importance of an ongoing feedback loop and the creation of a non-exclusive environment that encourages a wide range and degree of participation. It’s interesting that, in a time when so many businesses are looking for the secret to social media success online, Craigslist rarely figures into the discussion, when in many senses it’s a precursor to modern social media practices.

Via Aaron Rutledge.

Banners: the Media-Creative Schism

Great article from The Barbarian Group’s Rick Webb describing what I believe to be the single biggest problem in digital advertising right now: the gap between wholistic creative strategies and an understanding of what works in the digital space. So many of the agencies I’ve worked with over the past few years still treat digital as a tacked-on supplement to an overarching campaign (“Take this TV commercial, upload it to YouTube, and make it go ‘viral’”). Obviously this approach has limited effectiveness which is being even further reduced over time. I have yet to see an agency attack this problem successfully, but I believe that, as traditional media is further marginalized, successful companies will have no choice but to rely more heavily on digital creatives, and ultimately integrate them fully into creative/ branding team.

2009 Predictions in Media, Tech, and Pop

36 Predictions for 2009 in Media/Tech/Pop

Obviously I’m woefully late on the year-end 2008 list/ predictions trend, but this list from fimoculous is seriously great. My favorites:

Facebook. By the middle of summer, you realize that you’re logging into most websites via Facebook Connect. You get a creepy feeling in your gut about this, but it’s so damn convenient.

Politics. After a freak caribou attack injures Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Sarah Palin joins The View.

Magazines. Monocle raises its newsstand price to $1295.00.

Gossip Girl. In the Christmas ‘09 episode, Chuck and Blair finally fuck again. The recession ends.

Where The Wild Things Are. You know what? The movie actually does suck. Gen X icons Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers are pilloried by a millennials who claim old people just don’t get it. They’re kinda right.

FriendFeed. Not only does your mom still has no fucking idea what it is, but your friends don’t either.

Education. 37 percent of the people you know go back to grad school.

Via BuzzFeed.

Marci Ikeler

Twitter @marciikeler